The invention relates to improvements in child seats utilized in conjunction with shopping carts. The vast majority of modern shopping carts provided for customers of self-service supermarkets and the like are fabricated of heavy gauge wire and tubular stock material. These carts include a child seat structure having a substantially horizontal platform and a rearwardly facing seat back. A child may be positioned in the cart facing the operator with the child's legs extending through openings provided therefor in the rear wall of the cart.
The child seat structures described hereinabove have proven to be deficient in transporting very small children or infants. Infants for example do not possess the strength necessary to independently remain seated in an upright position. It is commonplace for an infant to fall or slump laterally when positioned upright in a shopping cart child seat thus rendering the child seat useless and even dangerous.
Another problem encountered in the use of child seat structures provided in conventional shopping carts is that older children placed therein many times try to extricate themselves therefrom and thereby create the possibility of accident such as falling out of the cart.
The present invention remedies the above-mentioned problems inherent in conventional shopping cart child seats by providing economical child seat structures embodying means for preventing a child placed therein from falling laterally to either side and means for restraining the child from extricating himself from the seat.
One preferred embodiment of the invention provides a portable seat sized to fit into conventional shopping cart child seat structures. A seat belt is provided for holding a child in the seat, and side restraining flaps are included to prevent the child from falling to either side. In use, the seat is affixed to the cart; however, it can easily be removed from the cart, collapsed and secured in the collapsed position so that it may be carried home in a shopping bag or in a woman's purse.
According to other preferred embodiments of the present invention, the novel child seat may be manufactured as original equipment on new shopping carts, or it may be permanently added to existing shopping carts. While these embodiments perform the same functions of preventing lateral falls and otherwise restraining the child, they are also constructed so that they may effortlessly be collapsed in the cart to permit the use thereof without the side restraining flaps or to permit the use of the cart without a child seat.
It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide improved child seats for use with shopping carts and the like which prevent a small child or infant from falling laterally to either side when placed in the shopping cart seat.
It is another object of the instant invention to provide means for restraining a child from extricating himself from a shopping cart seat.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a portable child seat which is constructed to permit the facile collapse thereof and the securing thereof in such collapsed condition.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a versatile child seat structure which may be permanently affixed to a shopping cart and which is collapsible to allow for the use thereof for smaller children requiring side restraints; for older children not requiring side restraints; and, for use of the cart without a child seat.
These as well as other objects and advantages will become more apparent upon a reading of the hereinbelow detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the instant invention in conjunction with the drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the invention as utilized in a conventional shopping cart;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the novel child seat per se;
FIG. 3 is a rear elevational view of the child seat;
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the child seat partially collapsed;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the child seat fully collapsed;
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of the invention affixed to a shopping cart and in a collapsed position;
FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 6 in the ready position;
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the rear of the child seat structure of FIG. 7;
FIG. 9 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the invention affixed to a shopping cart and in a collapsed position; and,
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 9 in the ready position.